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Cinderella Skeleton

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This ghoulish gal will steal your heart--just like she stole Prince Charnel's!

Poor Cinderella Skeleton! Her evil stepsisters treat her with scorn and work her from dawn till dusk. But when Prince Charnel hosts his famous Halloween Ball, Cindy finally gets her chance to shine. With the help of a good witch, Cinderella Skeleton is transformed into the belle of the ball and steals the
prince's heart. Then just as the sun peeks over the horizon, she must dash away! Will Prince Charnel ever find his true love again?

Master storyteller Robert D. San Souci and award-winning illustrator David Catrow have dreamed up a hilarious fractured fairy tale about the most dreadful darling you've ever seen.

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2000

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1317 people want to read

About the author

Robert D. San Souci

96 books90 followers
Robert Daniel San Souci (October 10, 1946 – December 19, 2014) was a multiple award-winning children's book author, who resided in San Francisco, California. He often worked with his brother, Daniel San Souci, a children's book illustrator. He was a consultant to Disney Studios and was instrumental in the production of the film Mulan, for which he wrote the story. He studied folklore in graduate school. He died after suffering a head injury while falling from a high height in San Francisco in December 2014. He was only 68 years old.

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5 stars
710 (39%)
4 stars
559 (31%)
3 stars
373 (20%)
2 stars
97 (5%)
1 star
42 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 305 reviews
Profile Image for Manybooks.
3,818 reviews101 followers
November 26, 2017
A quirky, fun and deliciously ghoulish adaptation of the Cinderella fairy tale, this is a perfect story for a Halloween read-aloud (I don't want to give away too many spoilers, but Cinderella and all of the other characters are skeletons, they live in a mausoleum, and the Prince's name is Prince Charnel, instead of Prince Charming, perfect). Although some sensitive, easily spooked children might find the lush, descriptively ghoulish illustrations a bit creepy (parents should make sure that the illustrations will not be too frightening and spooky before reading this tale with or to their children), the story itself is actually quite sweet and not all that frightening (with some interesting and humorous twists, like Cinderella Skeleton's stepfamily leaving for the ball in a hearse, and Cinderella being claimed by her prince by means of a lost foot instead of a lost glass slipper).

I don't know if I like the illustrations in and of themselves, and I do wonder wether some of the illustrations would have perhaps frightened me a bit as a child (first reading Cinderella Skeleton as an adult, I find the illustrations creepy, but fun, a perfect complement to the ghoulishly quirky, poetic narrative). However, the story, the narrative had me smiling and giggling right from the start, and I think I would have enjoyed the story even as a child, the rather creepy and ghoulish illustrations notwithstanding. I have always enjoyed clever, fun adaptations of fairy tales, and Cinderella Skeleton is truly fun and imaginative, while at the same time retaining the general feel, the emotions, the themes of the original story.

As a final word, I kind of wish that the author had included some supplementary material about Cinderella-like tales and their place in world folklore (since this is more of an original adaptation, the lack of an author's note is not as noticeable, but the folklorist in me still misses it somewhat).
Profile Image for Ronyell.
990 reviews338 followers
July 4, 2015
Skeleton

“Cinderella Skeleton” is a Halloween version of the classic fairy tale by the master of storytelling, Robert D. San Souci, along with spooky illustrations by David Catrow. This book is about a young and beautiful (according to her spooky world) skeleton named Cinderella Skeleton who wants to go to the Halloween Ball and dance with Prince Charnel. “Cinderella Skeleton” might be a bit too scary for smaller children, but older children will definitely love this creepy retelling of the classic fairy tale.

Robert D. San Souci has done a terrific job at retelling this classic fairy tale in a more Halloween spirited tone as all the characters in this book are skeletons and monsters instead of human beings that the original story portrayed, which makes this book extremely creative to read since it is Halloween themed. Robert D. San Souci makes the story perfectly spooky yet creative as the story is told through a rhyming prose while using such effective words such as “mausoleum” and “bombazine” to describe the haunting world that Cinderella Skeleton lives in. David Catrow’s illustrations are delightfully creepy yet beautiful at the same time as the world around Cinderella Skeleton is dark and bleak and Cinderella Skeleton herself is beautiful (as opposed to the dark world she lives in) as she wears a white torn silk dress that looks like it is made of spider webs which makes her look hauntingly elegant. Also, the image of Prince Charnel himself is somewhat frightening yet he has a handsome physique and he wears a soldier’s uniform that is covered with roaches and he carries a large red, white and black striped snake around the left side of his shoulders, giving him an elegant yet eerie appearance.

Skeleton

Parents should know that there are some genuinely frightening images in this book such as the images of the various monsters that attend the Halloween Ball as some of them have eyeballs missing from their heads and even the skeleton characters look somewhat frightening as they have holes in their eye sockets that look empty and eerie. Another image that might scare smaller children would be the image where Cinderella Skeleton losses her foot at the ball (even though she is a skeleton) and small children might worry that they might lose their feet too. Parents might want to read this book first before they show it to their children to see what their reactions are to such haunting images.

“Cinderella Skeleton” is a truly uplifting and haunting retelling of the classic fairy tale that many children will love for a long time. I would recommend this book to children ages six and up due to the frightening images and some complicated words like “mausoleum.”

Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog

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Profile Image for Dov Zeller.
Author 2 books125 followers
November 28, 2017
A book that is kind of all concept no story. Well, it's a retelling of Cinderella that doesn't really do anything new outside of the conceptual setting. And the art, while I can see why so many people enjoy it, isn't really in a style that draws me in. Perhaps if I hadn't watched Corpse Bride so many times some of the humor might have delighted me. But instead, it just seemed a bit tired. this is a low three stars for me, and I'm giving it that because there is a real sense of immersion in the world and tone of the book from the detailed richness of the illustrations.
608 reviews1 follower
June 16, 2021
I really love the premise of this book . My children and I are Halloween fanatics, and this is a spectacular and spooky retelling of Cinderella . My only complaint is that the rhyming seems a bit off.
Profile Image for Kaethe.
6,568 reviews533 followers
July 8, 2014
We loved all the little plays on skeletons and graveyards, but I wanted a bigger twist to the story. Yes, of course I did. I'm predictable in my love of twists. Me, O. Henry, and Rod Serling.
Profile Image for Calista.
5,432 reviews31.3k followers
October 17, 2017
Cinderella for Halloween. I enjoyed the art. The story is simply Cinderella with skeletons. My niece and nephew didn't feel it was too scary. They enjoyed the Halloween spin on the tale.
Profile Image for L13F_Jana Wilkening.
61 reviews
October 6, 2013
I LOVED this version of Cinderella. The story is almost exactly the same as the traditional Disney version, however the "twist" is that the main characters are all skeletons! Instead of losing a glass slipper, Cinderella's foot bone snaps off! So the prince searches the land while skeletons everywhere snap off their foot bones in the hope that the foot bone he has will fit! The reasons I loved this story are twofold: the poetic language and the illustrations. This story is written in poetry form and the vocabulary and imagery are fantastic. Stanzas like the following provide amazing imagery and introduce students to the power of word choice:

"Her build was long and lean and lank; her dankish hair hung down in hanks; her nails were yellow her teeth were green; the ghastliest haunt you've ever seen..."

In addition, the illustrations are straight out of a Tim Burton film. They are dark, haunting, creepy, and fun! You could stare at these pictures for hours and discover something new every time. Little details like dandelion coming out of Cinderella's head, or the bugs crawling out of the prince's sleeve add humor and fun to these pictures. I think the illustrations would be a combination of romanticism and impressionism.

I would use this book with older students in grade 5-8. The vocabulary alone would make this an amazing lesson on word choice. In addition, like I mentioned with "The Irish Cinderlad," this would be a great story to use with 8th grade CC Standards showing alternate versions and perspectives of Cinderella. This would be such a fun read during Halloween season in your classroom. I would have students rewrite other fairytales using a creepy twist and modeling the author's poetic writing style.

There were no cultural connections with this book-unless one believes in the "undead" culture. :) I could not find any weaknesses with this version. I just loved it!
Profile Image for Abigail.
7,988 reviews265 followers
October 12, 2018
Cinderella comes to the graveyard in this rhyming tale from the prolific Robert D. San Souci, an author known for his varied folkloric adaptations. With her long, lank build, 'dankish' hair, yellow nails, and green teeth, Cinderella Skeleton made an exquisite corpse. But despite this beauty (or perhaps because of it), and her hard-working nature, Cinderella's stepmother Skreech and stepsisters Gristlene and Bony-Jane treated her unkindly, making her do all the cobweb hanging, dead flower arranging, and leaf littering. When Prince Charnel holds a ball, Cinderella must appeal to the kindly local witch to help her, in obtaining suitable raiment and transportation, and she (not unexpectedly) enchants the Prince while attending. The token she leaves behind, in the form of her broken-off foot, when she must flee at midnight, allows Charnel to find his skeletal love again...

A deliciously dark retelling of this classic fairy-tale, Cinderella Skeleton is tons of fun to read, with its rhythmic text, gory details (the broken-off foot, rather than the slipper!), and appealingly creepy illustrations! David Catrow is an artist whose work sometimes appeals to me (as with She's Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head! ), and sometimes doesn't ( Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon ), but here it just works, providing an excellent visual accompaniment to San Souci's rollicking rhyme. Recommended to young readers who love both fairy-tales and Halloween, and don't mind a little bit of the grotesque in their holiday fare.
Profile Image for Dolly.
Author 1 book671 followers
June 13, 2012
This story offers a very interesting and creative take on the classic Cinderella fairytale. The story and illustrations are extremely reminiscent of The Nightmare Before Christmas and the story has a creepy, yet sweet feel to it.

We enjoyed reading this story together, but it was certainly not our favorite version of Cinderella. It's a bit too grotesque for my tastes, and it might be too bizarre and scary for younger children. Recommended for older elementary school-age children.
Profile Image for Brenda.
971 reviews47 followers
March 20, 2011
This is a wonderful retelling of Cinderella written in rhyme. However, the author cleverly makes Cinderella a skeleton who lives with her terrible stepmother and stepsisters in a mausoleum. I certainly enjoy the choice of names like Skreech, Gristlene and Bony-Jane. Cinderella Skeleton is even hoping to meet her Prince Charnel. David Catrow's detailed illustrations are spooking, humorous and add just the right touch of creepiness to this wonderful story.
Profile Image for Mauoijenn.
1,121 reviews121 followers
December 28, 2014
Such a magical tale told in an odd but beautiful taste. This book was a gem to read as it had a Tim Burton feel to it. My son and I loved this book. I especially loved the beautiful breath taking illustrations. Now I'm trying to restrain my self from cutting pictures out of this boardbook!!
Profile Image for Tamara.
148 reviews12 followers
March 22, 2016
"Your teeth like polished kidney stones"

This is a children's retelling of Cinderella. It's short and took about 5 minutes to read.
I really enjoyed the poetic aspect of the story, and the illustrations were stunning- enough to earn 5 stars all on their own.
Profile Image for Thomasin Propson.
1,159 reviews23 followers
November 18, 2022
I was expecting something more than... Cinderella but she's a skeleton. But nope, that's what you get. Neato illustrations, sure, but nothing new for the story.
Profile Image for An Abundance of Books.
192 reviews142 followers
October 29, 2010
This is the story, told in verse, of Cinderella Skeleton, her cruel stepfamily (Stepmother Skreech and stepsisters Gristlene and Bony-Jane), and how her decision to take action changed her life.

Cinderella Skeleton "everything a ghoul should be", dank hair, yellow nails, green teeth - she was the foulest in the land. She spent all night slaving away, arranging dead flowers, hanging up cobwebs, feeding the bats, so much work so little time. When she was not allowed to attend Prince Charnel's "frightfully famous Halloween Ball", Cinderella decided to take action. She went to the kind forest witch who tricks her out in a ball gown of lace, nightmares (part horse, part dragon) to pull the funeral wagon, footmen and a driver to speed her on her way with a final warning:

Before you go,
There's one important thing to know:
You must return before the morning.
If you fail to heed my warning,
Your joy will fade at the
break of day.

Cinderella made it safely to the ball, caused a stir, and she and Prince Charnel fell madly in love. In fact, she had such a wonderful time that she missed two things: Her family recognized and the sun was rising. In her mad dash to be home before the spell fades, Cinderella loses her foot. Prince Charnel wanders the country looking for the foot's owner (the other ghouls were happy to break off their feet for the test). He finally makes it to Cinderella Skeleton's house, finds his love, ties her foot back on, and they live happily ever after.

Cinderella Skeleton is a great idea, with great pictures, but the verse and vocabulary make it seem a little long. My students enjoy it, but I either have to explain loads of words (much harder when working with a group) or altering the words as you go along. I normally do both, I explain a few words that I think they'll like and that I can explain clearly (and fairly quickly) and then alter other words to those the kids know. (My classes tend to be half native English speakers and half for whom it's their second language - so there's lots to explain.) I think defining certain words will be a lot easier with a family sized group. The pictures are also far more enjoyable when you can spend more time looking at them - lots of fun details.

Great illustrations and creative concept bring new life to the old Cinderella story - even the boys and older kids like it. (I mean middle or high school when I say "older kids".) I'll give it 3 out of 6 stars - it's a fun Halloween read, I recommend getting it from the library, especially since the story seems to lag during Prince Charnel's hunt for his "promised princess bride".
Profile Image for Peggy.
267 reviews76 followers
August 22, 2007
As you may have noticed, I have a fondness for the odd and offbeat in books. Something about the quirkiness calls to my black and twisted heart. Edward Gorey is my hero. I want to hang out in a bar with Angus Oblong and Tim Burton. But a Gashlycrumb Tinies, a Creepy Susie, or a Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy comes along so rarely that I am forced to look beyond the borders of books for grown-ups and take my search to the kids department, where occasionally I am rewarded beyond my wildest (or strangest) dreams. Ladies and gents, I give you Cinderella Skeleton.

As the title implies, Cinderella Skeleton gives us a re-telling of the familiar tale we grew up with. San Souci’s twist is to set the story in a Nightmare Before Christmas-esque shadowland populated by skeletons, bats, black cats, and other Halloween-ish delights. The story is told in rhyme and gives us the story of Cinderella Skeleton’s wish to attend the Halloween Ball and meet the dashing Prince Charnel. I won’t give away any of the delightful tweaks San Souci gives to the story—you’ve just got to check it out yourself.

But as clever as this updated version is what makes this book David Catrow’s amazing illustrations. Colorful without being too cheery, clever without distracting from the story, these pictures are a joy to behold. Surely you know of child (or child at heart) who you wish to mold in your own mis-shapen image.
Profile Image for Beth Rice.
44 reviews3 followers
February 8, 2010
Cinderella Skeleton by Robert D. San Souci follows the traditional Cinderella closely with changes that make it a spookier story with some dark humor. Rather cleaning the home, Cinderella Skeleton must streak the windows, scatter leaves on the floors, and hang cobwebs. When going to the Halloween Ball, the good witch living in the forest provides Cinderella Skeleton with a hearse with part horse and part dragon creatures. When leaving the ball rather simply loosing her shoe, Cinderella Skeleton’s ankle bone is snapped off by Prince Charnel. I enjoyed this story and the twists San Souci adds to this tale. David Catrow's illustrations also add to the spookiness of the story. Thin skeletons with large eye sockets and the ghoulish on-lookers at the ball allow readers to feel the slight darkness of Cinderella Skeleton. I would use this story with students in first and second grades. It could also be used with third and fourth grade students. This is a great addition to a Cinderella unit of study that compares the different versions of the traditional tale with which so many children are familiar.
Profile Image for Laura.
1,630 reviews80 followers
June 6, 2009
This book is a cross between Tim Burton's two films 'The Corpse Bride' and 'Nightmare Before Christmas' mixed with the generic Cinderella story. It is a very odd mixture. There were some things that I thought were a little too creepy, and some things that almost made me smirk. Still, this book was just a little to0 off for my tastes. I would be wary of recommending it to young children. The illustrations do their fair share of portraying the story and might frighten some kids.

*Taken from my book reviews blog: http://reviewsatmse.blogspot.com/2009...
Profile Image for Margaux.
1,563 reviews32 followers
November 17, 2014
This book was delightful. For all you dark fantasy-types, for all you "Once Upon A Time" types, for all you "dark humor" types, this book is for you. And I'm talking about myself here as well. The illustrations were whimsical and this was a truly unique interpretation of the most retold folk tale of all time. Every culture has a Cinderella/Aschenputtel tale, and none that I've seen incorporate modern America's fixation on hauntings quite as seamlessly as this version. I think children would really sympathize with Cinderella Skeleton-- the illustrations do a wonderful job of creating emotion on her bony face.
Profile Image for (NS)Jennifer Reiner.
53 reviews8 followers
October 3, 2009
This book uses difficult vocabulary and rhyme to tell another story of Cinderella. Cinderella Skeleton lives in a mausoleum with her terrible stephmother, Skreech, and stepsisters Gristlene and Bony-Jane. One day when the Halloween Ball invitation arrives, a goodland witch helps her get ready for the ball. When running from Prince Charnel at sunrise, her slippered foot comes off. The terrible step family shrivels into dust. Older students will find this story to be entertaining yet somewhat disturbing.
Profile Image for Plethora.
281 reviews166 followers
December 4, 2015
This was an absolutely delightful Halloween twisted version of Cinderella. It was spooky, but not overly frightening. I absolutely loved the pictures that went along with the story. The story line will be easily recognized as following the well known Cinderella story with the evil step-family, a prince charming and a magical fairy godmother, of course all with a twist.
Profile Image for Muz.
49 reviews13 followers
August 6, 2008
The illustrations are what drew me to this. They are just delicious in an Edward Gorey/Tim burton kind of way. The story is straight up Cinderella, except that she loses a bit more than just her shoe....

Very cute book. Children's books shouldn't always be bright rainbows and cheery flowers!
Profile Image for Jennybug.
623 reviews11 followers
August 20, 2009
We read this last night. This is a really fun Halloween Story. Although it is a Cinderella story it has a fun twist, instead of losing her shoe the prince pulls off her foot. I know it is a little gory, but it makes me chuckle. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Profile Image for Donald Armfield.
Author 67 books176 followers
August 12, 2012
Instead of loosing her glass slipper. Cinderella Skeleton loses her ankle bone connected to her foot bone. A great little rhyming tale for a change in the Cinderella Tale. Could of did without the rhyme though.
Profile Image for Heather.
20 reviews1 follower
October 9, 2017
Cinderella Skeleton is your typical Cinderella. She has two evil step sisters and an evil stepmother and of course, a Prince who throws a ball. The main difference between her story and others is that she's already dead. In the beginning, her sisters make her do a plethora of chores around the house, like hanging cobwebs, before they get the invitation to a Halloween Party that Prince Charnel is throwing. Cinderella Skeleton helps her sisters get ready before seeing them off to the party. She then goes out in search of the good witch who will help her get ready for the party. They change a pumpkin into a funeral wagon, rats to nightmares (part horse, part dragon), bats to footmen, and a cat into a driver. Her clothes turned into a gown of lace and her shoes turn to slippers with satin roses. She attends the party and falls in love with Prince Charnel and as she tries to leave, he grabs her foot to stop her which ends up breaking off as she continues running. Eventually, he finds her and reconnects her foot and they get married to start their happily ever after.

This book is more on the scary side for children, but it would be a good book for October, around Halloween. The illustrations can be seen as creepy and if you look into them, the amount of detail the illustrator put in is outstanding. The shading of the characters and the backgrounds provides such depth that it's hard to imagine this was meant for children. The use of colors, all watercolor, blend effortlessly and allow for the images to flow beautifully. I think the images in this story will really draw the readers in as they're going to find the colors to be pretty even if the images itself are quite scary. The story differentiates from the original, which is also something I think will be good for the readers as it's a story they know but with a lot of twists to keep them interested. It has a lot of words so it's obviously meant for older children, but it's a good story nonetheless with lots of plot twists and easily readable text. A lot of the sentences in the books rhyme which will be a good surprise for the kids once they figure it out. The story is interesting and entertaining enough to want to go back through and notice all the little details you might have missed the first time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 305 reviews

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